Chinese Noodle Restaurant
I'm not sure there are many restaurants out there with a Facebook page of more than 700 fans. Chinese Noodle Restaurant is a cheap and cheery place, popular with students, grads and just about everyone else... and has 719 fans & counting!
Over the years, Chinese Noodle Restaurant has fine-tuned its process to meet its peak hour demands such that by the time a table is available for you, the order you had placed outside is served almost immediately. The service is as quick as fast food and rather quirky. Cans of soft drinks are stored in eskies and like most Northern Chinese and Uighur restaurants, there are grape vines hanging from the ceiling and wall tapestries on all sides.
At Chinese Noodle Restaurant, there's even a tiny squared window for customers to view the kneading, whacking and stretching of handmade noodles.
One of my favourite dishes here, is the eggplant special. Chunky pieces of eggplant are fried and coated in a light crisp glaze... thankfully, they have never been overbearingly soaked in oil.
I was in a classic kind of mood, so we also order these steamed pork and chive dumplings which are scrumptious with a dash of chilli and vinegar. The serving size was plentiful with a 12 serve only costing us $8.50. Other variations include egg & chives, pork & Chinese cabbage, pork & seafood, lamb & celery, lamb & onion and lamb & carrot. The dumplings can also be boiled or tossed in a light pan-fry.
These pan-fried mini pork buns were piping hot and so filling! The crunchy base was addictive so I found myself finishing off more than I should have! But I think I'd still prefer the crab filling from Shanghai Night / New Shanghai in Ashfield.
Today, the signature Xinjiang handmade noodle stir-fry was heavier than usual but the combination of Chinese cabbage, tomatoes and capsicum provided relief.
Nothing beats a tasty, authentic and highly addictive midweek dinner at Chinese Noodle Restaurant.
Chinese Noodle Restaurant
Prince Centre, Shop 7 / 8 Quay St, Chinatown
(02) 9281 9051
June 03, 2008
New Shanghai Chinese Restaurant
As I'm making my way to Shanghai Night (confusingly, the dumpling / noodle house next door), a woman fiercely slides open the door of New Shanghai and beckons us to sit down.
The menu was practically identical to its rival except this place was cleaner, brighter and dare I say better?
Replacing the torn fluoro menu posters were LCD TV's... and the corner table and chair was transformed into a modern open kitchen. Throughout the night, I watched as the cook effortlessly kneaded the dough and wrapped trays after trays of dumplings and buns.
These are my absolute favourite. They're steamed mini pork buns, which are also known as 'xiao long bao'. I love how they're steamed to perfection... the first bite always lets out a squirt of steam and soup which is ofcourse full in pork, ginger and soy flavour. They were delish!
Soon after, these uber crispy dumplings arrive. They're exactly what we wanted. Piping hot pastry with tender juicy morsels of pork mince and coriander inside.
The Shanghai-style spicy noodle soup with bamboo, pork and beancurd was good too. Although I still preferred the handmade noodles at Northern Noodle House in Haymarket.
The bill came to $25. A bargain for 2 full bellies!
New Shanghai Chinese Restaurant
273 Liverpool Road Ashfield
Call (02) 9797 7284
May 15, 2008
Buddha's Birthday vegetarian food festival 2008
On the weekend... I found myself at the Buddha's Birthday festival in Darling Harbour. I was there for the vegetarian food fair ofcourse!
The Chinese Garden Forecourt was filled with hungry families and volunteers from BLIA (Buddha's Light International Association) and IBAA (Fo Guang Shan Nan Tien Temple).
Here are some of my snapshots -
Buddha's Birthday Festival 2008
Saturday 10 - Sunday 11 May 2008
Darling Harbour
For more information, visit the official Nan Tien Temple events page: http://nantien.org.au/en/news/News_View.asp?NewsID=13
March 04, 2008
cheap and delicious, Auburn Chinese Restaurant
I have found it.
Fresh and cheap seafood that doesn’t compromise on taste! Okay, so the service can be a hit and miss at times, but the food is casual Chinese at its best.
On a good service day, you’ll be greeted with these salted peanuts as an appetiser. On a bad service day, expect to walk into the kitchen yourself to grab additional utensils or even to refill your own bucket of rice.
Live mud crab can be cooked to your desire for $45 per kilo. From my experience, this is completely below the market price of most decent Chinese restaurants in Sydney! Tantalize your taste buds with a fierce XO sauce or go for the traditional ginger, shallots and garlic.
The best thing about this restaurant is probably the genuineness. You get what you pay for. There’s no worrying about the chef cheating you by keeping a crab leg to himself, or by cooking a smaller crab than the one you were showed.
During my recent two visits (funnily enough, they were 3 days apart), the crab was 0.850kg and 0.630kg… this was perfect for 2 people, keeping in mind the e-fu noodles were a must to soak up all the gorgeous live crab flavours. I haven’t stopped raving about it since. A seafood dinner for two, for less than $50 in total!
The crab was delectable. The flesh was sweet, definitely fresh (we were shown the live crawling creature and weight) and simply divine. Chunks of shallots, ginger and garlic were braised through a thickened stock sauce.
It doesn’t stop there. They have live tanks of barramundi, huge lobsters, king crabs, pipis and oysters… don’t let the murky tanks, crowded tables or colourful foreign posters fool you. To be honest, I don’t speak or read Chinese either… but have recently been most impressed with the waitress’ and restaurant owner’s improvement in English.
My other favourite dishes at Auburn Chinese Restaurant include the pork ribs in spicy salt, combination hotpot with tofu (below) and steamed oysters with soy, coriander and shallots.
You know what? You might even find me back there tonight…
Auburn Chinese Restaurant
138 South Parade, Auburn
(Opposite Auburn Station)
Closed on Tuesdays
Read about my previous entry on Auburn Chinese Restaurant.
November 05, 2007
Rhodes Phoenix, Yum Cha
I have just discovered a local Yum Cha that is comparable to those in the City. Rhodes Phoenix is neatly tucked away from the hustle and bustle of Rhodes Shopping Centre (also home to giant outlet Ikea). It is the 4th child of the Phoenix Restaurants family, the other siblings being Sky Phoenix, Hilltop Phoenix and Manly Phoenix; so I suppose it's success isn't really that surprising.
Marketed to Westerners, among the 500 seats are projector screens of cartoons and sport matches... these are entertaining yet frustrating since the chatter around the restaurant means the shows have to be played mute. The furnishings aren't the usual chandelier with masses of gold and red either... there were dark mahogany cabinets, spotlight lighting and dark drapes. English speaking staff helped a lot also.
First up was the classic Har Gow. These were prepared the traditional way with whole prawns, wrapped in a perfect -not too thick or sticky rice flour sheet.
Another traditional item was the Ham Sui Gok... not as big or crisp as I've previously had, but still it was sublimely filled with a mixture of pork mince, shitake mushrooms, bamboo and black fungus.
The Fung Jeow was absolutely divine. It was so tender and smooth... I think this absolutely exceeded standards... it's the best i've had :-)
Sui Mai... what can I say? It's the usual meaty dumpling... I ordered this dish for the man, as he likes his meats... haha! The prawn toast was a childhood delicacy. Fried on top of toast, I loveee everything about it -the crunch, the prawn paste, the sesame bits... mMmMm...
The desserts at yum cha have evolved in the recent years. Thumbs up to the fusion inspired Green Tea and Coconut Jelly, and the Mango Pudding.
Be sure to go early on weekends as it queues up.
Rhodes Phoenix
Level 5, Rhodes Shopping Centre
August 31, 2007
Mother Chu's Vegetarian Kitchen
I've been working across the street from Mother Chu's Vegetarian Kitchen the last 9 months. So I jumped at the opportunity of finally lunching there when 2 workmates mentioned that they were planning on trying something new. The elderly Chinese have a respect for this place, and I can totally understand why. They serve delicious vegetarian alternatives and the Buddhist culture is truley brought out in the casual decor, genuine service and hearty menu. Catering for strict Buddhists means that there's no alcohol consumption on the premises. Sparkling juices are prepared in replacement of wine and beer. And tofu or soybean of all shapes and textures are served looking and sometimes even tasting like the meaty variation.
Mother Chu's also do vegetarian peking duck! But considering our limited hour, we only had the San Choi Bao. There were bits of bamboo shoots, shitake mushrooms and water chestnut. I didn't really take notice of the other ingrdients but each bite was full of flavour. You could barely tell that it didn't consistent of meat!
Next was the honey glazed pumpkin and apples. The photo talks for itself. A thick yet light crisp batter coated the sweet pieces of pumpkin and apple. The glazed honey was perfect and wasn't one bit too sticky nor sweet. I'm coming back here for the dessert fritters... available in pineapple, banana and more.
The hot pot was meant to add greenery to our meal. But instead we were served white vegetables (cauliflower, potatoes & Chinese cabbage) in a glutinous curry sauce. The soybean and nori rolls were fried to a golden brown and tasted a lot like fish!
Mother Chu's Vegetarian Kitchen was warm & cosy. The generous serving sizes and yummy food makes it one of the must visit places along Pitt Street :)
Mother Chu's Vegetarian Kitchen
367 Pitt St Sydney
Mon-Fri 12:00pm- 3:00pm
Mon-Sat 5:00pm-10:00pm
Tel: (02) 9283-2828
Web: http://sydney.citysearch.com.au/E/V/SYDNE/0020/16/08/1.html
February 18, 2007
Launch of Chinese New Year festival, Belmore Park
Way back on the 9th of February, the Chinese New Year festival was officially launched...
Cheers to a great start! What I love about being an ABC (Australian-born Chinese) is that I get to celebrate New Year twice. Nothing is better than getting that extra boost of motivation to fulfil the year's resolutions.
On another note... As we were lazing on the grounds of Belmore Park like hobos, I was introduced to a website that was totally dedicated to TeoChew people! For those who don't know what it is... simply put -it is a Chinese dialect. I've never been exposed to much of the history or culture, so now that I'm a member, there's so much to be learnt! Check it out www.gaginang.org.
More info on the 2007 Chinese New Year Festival
December 26, 2006
Port Orient Restaurant (and Karaoke)
Last Thursday night, Eyeblaster AU had their Christmas party...
Port Orient Restaurant transforms into a karaoke bar after 9pm. So while we were really here to embarrass ourselves, the food was surprisingly impressive. For $59.90 per person, we had the 'Special Christmas Banquet' with two entrees (four pieces for $10). And what a great night it was -there was plenty of laughter, great entertainment and fablulous views which overlooked the harbour.
Inside the Scallop Seafood Case were fresh vegetables -onion and capsicum, enveloped within a creamy curry-scented paste...
The Crispy Skin Chicken was perfect! The skin was glossy and crisp, and the flesh inside was tender and sweet. MmMmm...
Another outstanding dish was the salt and pepper calamari, which reminded me of giant onion rings... The calarmari was coated with a thin batter, beaming with fragrant salt and pepper seasoning.
And after we all lay down our chopsticks with satisfaction, the greens arrived.
Port Orient Restaurant
Harbourside Shopping Centre
Level 2, Shop 449-451
Phone (02) 9282 9922
December 03, 2006
Lunch at Nan Tien Temple, Wollongong
The Nan Tien Temple is the largest Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere... so it has kind of become a tourist attraction for any visiting relatives. And depite the rain yesterday, it was no exception for my great aunt. The temple is gloriously tranquil, filled with the grandeur of giant monuments, fancy landscapes and rich chandeliers.
The dining hall, too, maintained the airy and peaceful ambience, with Buddha statues, soothing chants in the background and staff whom were extremely quiet and courteous. The vegetarian lunch set menu is available on Tuesdays to Fridays, 11am - 2pm, and on weekends from 11:30am until 2:30pm. For $8, we get two main dishes, today's being a curry stir-fry and a soy-based vegetable dish with tofu, another green veggie dish, a few pieces of veggie tempura, fresh fruit, and a side order of either hokkien noodles, steamed jasmine rice or fried rice. Spring rolls made with rice vermicelli, cabbage and carrot were also available for an additional dollar. What a bargain!
November 27, 2006
Iron Chef Chinese Seafood Restaurant
Iron Chef Chinese Seafood Restaurant is meant to be a part of the new breed. Along side it's sister restaurant, Zilver, they clearly stand out from the traditional Chinese restaurants, in terms of menu range, ambience and furnishing.
One of the great things about dining at Chinese restaurants would be all the complementary starters and desserts. We started off with the house soup, which was served in a cute porcelain pot. The soup showed signs of being boiled for hours...
Next up was the Morwong, also known as the Deep Sea Bream, or Rubber Lips; and its lips truely lived up to it's name. Its soft flesh was steamed with shallots, coriander and soy. This dish was actually prepared wrong, but my lovely parents decided to not make a fuss and accepted it anyway. What sane-minded person would order such a large fish steamed? I don't know what the chefs were thinking? There was an apology -but no discount.. hehe...
Furthermore, this is how unthoughful the restaurant was... THEY DIDN'T SERVE THE CRAB FIRST! Being served in between dishes meant that we weren't able to fully savor this $180 dish. Snow Crabs are a little less meaty than other crabs, but it is meant to be sweeter in flavour. Ours was somewhat dull and tasteless. Doh!
Another of my absolute favourite dishes would have to be this crispy taro duck... deboned duck, deep-fried with creamy taro paste on the inside... and served with a thick shitake mushroom sauce.
Then we had the Wasabi Beef which hardly tasted of the unbearably hot kick I can desired for.
Beauty is obviously skin-deep. Beneath the classy makeover, were waiters whom spoke while chewing gum and food which took over an hour to be prepared and served...
Iron Chef Chinese Seafood Restaurant
84 Broomfield St Cabramatta
Phone (02) 9723 6228
September 27, 2006
Mother Chu's Taiwanese Gourmet
Mother Chu's isn't a place you go to for service or cleanliness... The seating is crowded, but nonetheless, we ordered, and paid upfront. The food was fairly cheap, and as expected, very greasy.
Mother Chu's Taiwanese Gourmet
Shop 1, 8688 Dixon St Chinatown / Haymarket
Tel: (02) 9211 0288
September 08, 2006
Moore Park Golden Century Seafood Restaurant
What a nice ending to a very hectic week. The Eyeblaster AU team switched on our Outlook out-of-office assistants, and diverted our direct lines for what we hoped to be a peaceful Friday afternoon... Lunch was served at the Moore Park Golden Century Seafood Restaurant. The ceiling to floor windows exposed us to the lovely landscaped streets of the Entertainment Quarter. The interior was spacious and airy... also unexpectedly quiet.
A little disappointed that this seafood restaurant didn't have any soft-shelled crab, we ordered two servings of the salt & pepper squid.
The wasabi beef was one of this restaurant's specialties, but I found it a little too sweet, and was missing that little extra kick of hotness from the wasabi. I've had this dish before at TingHa Restaurant at Parramatta, where the beef was actually green. Overall, it was quite nice and tender.
Moore Park Golden Century Seafood Restaurant
Shop 1/F, 220/888 Bent Street
Entertainment Quater, Cnr Lang Road & Driver Avenue, Moore Park
Tel: 9358 4488
Web: http://www.goldencentury.com.au/
August 27, 2006
Yum Cha at Crystal Seafood Restaurant, Strathfield
Early Sunday morning, crowds gather amongst the steps of this restaurant to wait for a seat. Towards the busier afternoon, numbered tickets are handed out to ensure that it's a smooth process (yes, hungry yum-cha goers can sometimes make a scene if the queue is unjustified). Once our number is called, we feel a sense of pride... as though we've just won exclusive entrance to a celebrity fested event. I felt everyone's envy as we were hushed into the busy restaurant.
Immediately, we begun pointing at dishes we'd like order. Today, my yum-cha companion is Zen. With both of us speaking poor Chinese, we naturally order in English. I found that the majority of waitresses were able to describe the dishes with 2 words or less. I was often told that the food was "different" or "very nice".
My second most favourite yum-cha item is the taro puff. I was extremely disappointed with this version, which looked bald in comparison to the normal thick lacy & crispy exterior.
Overall, we were charged a little over $40... which I thought was pretty pricey for the quality and quantity! I'll be sure to post up the over-due entry on Emperor's Garden - Yum Cha soon...
Crystal Seafood Restaurant, Strathfield
Shop 29/11 The Boulevarde, Strathfield.
Opens for Yum cha from 11am - 3pm on weekdays and from 11am - 3pm on weekends.
August 08, 2006
Auburn Chinese Restaurant
My family has been regulars at Auburn Chinese Restaurant for almost a year now. Before that, we never really tried any local restaurants. But this place has restored our trust! Now, it has become our alternative to home cooking. The Auburn Chinese Restaurant offers simple hearty Chinese food, with BYO. It is great casual dining for those lazy days. Be sure to turn up early though, because it gets packed by 7pm. This night... I went with Zen.
Auburn Chinese Restaurant
138 South Parade, Auburn
(Opposite Auburn Station)
Closed on Tuesdays.